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The Hundereise Team was given the FURBO dog camera to test. Martina took a close look at the camera and checked how the Furbo works. The Galgo boys Atlas, Tiago & Neroli also took their "job" very seriously and showed what they get up to during the day when they're home alone. Read Martina's verdict here:
I had the honour of testing the Furbo dog camera
Inside the lovely box was the Furbo itself and a small quick start guide folder. I placed the Furbo on a chest of drawers that gives a good view of the living room and the Galgos' lounging spots.
The setup
Just as described in the folder, only the following steps were actually needed:
- Plug your Furbo into the power socket
- Wait until the light turns green
- Download the Furbo app and follow the simple setup instructions
I'm not a fan of long instruction manuals, so I was really pleased that it truly was that straightforward. Said and done! Just download the app, connect to the Wi-Fi and you're all set.
The Furbo lights up in different colours. Through this status indicator, the camera shows:
- Starting up
- Ready to install
- Standby
- Furbo in use
- No Wi-Fi connection
On the underside there are 3 adhesive pads to keep it stable on the unit. Worked perfectly.
How does the Furbo work?
You tap on the app on your phone and immediately get a live video feed from your living room. The date and current time are displayed in the top left of the image. In the bottom left there's a camera and a video icon: I can take photos as well as videos of around one minute, which are saved directly to my phone.
In the centre of the screen there's a treat icon. This activates the function to shoot a reward into the living room for your dog. And in the bottom right you can see my favourite feature: the sound! I have the option to talk to the dogs. It sounds funny, but it's actually proven to be very useful over the past few weeks.
It's also worth switching on the "Bell Alarm". This means I get a notification on my phone whenever one of my dogs barks.
Our test over the past few weeks
Now many of you are probably wondering: "Hmm, why would I want to watch what my dogs do all day?"
One of my Galgos — Tiago — struggled with being left alone for a very long time. It can still be quite difficult sometimes, and thanks to the Furbo I've been able to see over the past few weeks when he was quite restless and unable to sleep like the other two.
For me, that was a sign to get back to work with my holistic vet and look at where we can help him. We need to support Tiago in sleeping better during the day when I'm not at home. If I hadn't had the chance to look into the living room, I simply wouldn't have known.
So of course I started opening the app several times a day to check whether the dogs were sleeping. The image is very clear and everything is easy to make out. Worth mentioning is that the camera also has a well-functioning night vision mode in the dark.
The Bell Alarm & the voice function
My dogs almost never bark. Even so, Tiago managed to trigger the Bell Alarm a few times. I was then able to check immediately whether he had calmed down again or not. If not, I switched on the speaker, spoke to him, and he genuinely recognised my voice through the Furbo.
I can't say whether this works with every dog, of course. But with Tiago it was clear — he looked around for where I was and then did settle down in his spot at my command.
I didn't try the treat-shooting feature. Simply because I have three dogs. They don't have any food aggression towards each other, but which of the three would I even shoot it to?
Verdict.
Since I've had it sitting in the living room I somehow feel calmer, so I can wholeheartedly recommend this dog camera. All in all, I think the Furbo is a truly great device!
If you'd like to see for yourselves,
we have one more great surprise for you to finish off:
With the code hundereiseat50 you'll get €50 off
when you buy a camera in the Furbo Shop.
Unfortunately, for logistical reasons it is currently not possible to ship to Austria through this shop, but we'll keep you posted as soon as an attractive offer becomes available.
Thank you to Furbo & Karkalis Communication for giving us the opportunity
to test this high-quality product.
